Shorter Bio:

Joyce Luna is a contemporary folk/Americana artist who blends beautiful soulful singing with poetic & thought-provoking songwriting that’s both intimate & universal. She balances a romantic streak with a deep understanding of the pains and joys of modern society, an ability to chronicle the vagaries of love, an unwillingness to be silent about injustice, and a persistent belief that music can change the world--all laced with humor & connection. So come to her shows prepared to laugh, to cry, to be inspired, and to sing along! 

After a long hiatus due to a mysterious medical issue (*see below), Joyce began performing regularly again in Spring 2016. This past year, she has focused on recording her contemporary folk/Americana debut solo album Every Road We Take (co-produced by Ryan David Green of Ryanhood!!), which is being released in early May 2018. 

Recorded primarily in her current home of Tucson Arizona, it features 12 original songs that come to an hour’s worth of music. She started crowdfunding in 2017, less than a year after her return to performing, and raised over $9,000 to independently record and release this record.

Recommended if you like James Taylor, Jason Mrasz, Aimee Mann, Sara Bareilles, The Weepies, Laura Nyro, Patty Griffin, Sweet Honey in the Rock, Carole King, &/or Joni Mitchell, the album Every Road We Take features a stellar cast of musicians including: Michael Gilbert Ronstadt (nephew of Linda Ronstadt) on cello; co-producer Ryan David Green (of the folk duo Ryanhood) on guitar, mandolin, keyboards, bass, & harmony vocals; jazz drummer Pete Swan; and members of EveryTown for Gun Safety/Moms Demand Action for Gun Safety in America (Tucson & Chicago chapters) singing with Joyce on her anthemic song We Shall Be Seen.
Every Road We Take is available in CD and digital format on her website, and through all major Outlets including Bandcamp, CD Baby, iTunes, Amazon, and so on.

Joyce previously toured the US in an acoustic duo. They sold 10,000 copies of their 2 independently released albums, and then promptly broke up :)

*After an unexpectedly lengthy hiatus due to a mysterious orthopedic medical condition, which was finally diagnosed and robotically repaired in 2016, Joyce is now based in Tucson AZ & playing shows as a solo artist & w/her band. You can read  the full story of her journey through the medical system,  her serendipitous meeting with the cardiothoracic surgeon who specialized in her rare medical issue and who performed a cutting-edge robotic surgery that facilitated her return to music here: 

https://www.generosity.com/community-fundraising/let-s-help-joyce-luna-post-surgery-record-a-cd/x/16494817 

Joyce was also the subject of this feature article by Jonathan Frahm in the Tucson Weekly:

http://www.tucsonweekly.com/tucson/court-and-spark/Content?oid=7343662#fromMobile

Joyce feels at home on stage like nowhere else. Her time away from performing instilled in her what a privilege it is to stand on that stage and connect to an audience through words and music, laughter and emotion, rhythm and story. Her hope is to always bring excellence, authenticity, fun, and a sense of community & interconnectedness to each show!

Contact info/media:
Website: www.Joycelunamusic.com
Email: joycelunamusic@gmail.com
Facebook Page: Joyce Luna Music
YouTube Channel: Joyce Luna Music

Longer Bio:

Joyce Luna blends beautiful soulful singing with poetic and thought-provoking songwriting, a romantic streak, a persistent belief that music can change the world, and a large scoop of whimsy. She has been described as the musical melting pot of James Taylor, Sara Bareilles, Coldplay’s Chris Martin, and Joni Mitchell.

Joyce feels at home on stage like nowhere else. Her time away from performing instilled in her what a privilege it is to stand on that stage and connect to an audience through words and music, laughter and emotion, rhythm and story. Her hope is to always bring positivity, truth, fun, and a sense of interconnectedness to each show!.


“...Just about the closest thing to musical nirvana you’re going to encounter in this or any other life, unless you’ve been very, very, good indeed & have a major deity owing you a big favor.”—The Metroland

Joyce toured the U.S. as part of the nationally-acclaimed acoustic singer/songwriter duo "Justina & Joyce", who sold 10,000 copies of their two independently-released albums and then promptly broke up.

A few months into the launch of her solo career, and just before going into the recording studio, unforeseen back surgeries forced her to take an extended sabbatical from touring and performing. She then took a side trip to graduate school, earning a Master’s degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling.
 
Ongoing numbness in her left hand prevented her from performing for over a decade, but a recent medical breakthrough in robotic surgery has finally allowed her to return to the stage!
 
Now she is taking the Tucson music scene by storm, both as a solo artist and with her band Joyce Luna & the Constellations. And with a host of new original songs waiting to be shared, Joyce is planning to get into the studio soon to record a new album. Her foray into behavioral health is not going to waste: her experience as a mental health counselor is proving helpful in dealing with the craziness of the music business.
 
 
Joyce was born the youngest of 5 children in Bronx, NY. Her musical gifts are genetic: Her mother Raquel, born in Casablanca, Morocco (really) of French and Spanish Jewish parents, was a singer...but “good girls” didn't go on the stage in those days in that culture, so she became a nurse instead. It took marrying Joyce’s American father Rudy and coming to the U.S. in the ’60s for her mother to find the freedom to express herself.
 
Her father Rudy, born in Pennsylvania to Polish Catholic immigrants, left home at age 14 because he did not want to follow his father into the coal mines. He instead became a boxer whose claim to fame was knocking out Frank Sinatra in a boxing match (really). He then became a welder who worked on many Manhattan skyscrapers.
 
While working on Naval ships in Spain for a time, Rudy was injured. Raquel was his hospital nurse. Their eyes met across a crowded room, they married 6 weeks later, and they proceeded to have 4 kids in 5 years. They did not speak a common language for all that time and got along beautifully. Then they came back to the States, Raquel learned English, and things went a bit downhill from there.
 
Joyce was born several years later. At age 3, Joyce began her performing career singing her mother’s composition “Pledge for Peace.” She sang it as “Pledge for Peas.” Inspired by that early interpretive success, Joyce continued to sing at her brother’s bar mitvah, student talent shows,  and of course in front of a mirror with her favorite hairbrush. She started writing her own songs as a teenager and has never stopped. She might even still sing into a hairbrush sometimes.

Contact info/media:
Website: www.Joycelunamusic.com
Email: joycelunamusic@gmail.com
Facebook Page: Joyce Luna Music
YouTube Channel: Joyce Luna Music

Here are some reviews of Joyce Luna & of her former duo “Justina and Joyce":
“... possesses exactly what the throngs of angst-mad modern folk singers only crave: originality, wit & style." —Lahri Bond, Dirty Linen

“The complexity and polish will stand you still and stop you breathing just in order to get a better listen. I found it spellbinding, which I proved by driving through a stop sign (luckily without incident) while listening in my car! Joyce’s lyrics are surface lovely, poetic, yet are generally conveying volumes of underlying story as well...”—Shirley Cottle, Folk_Music

“Using guitar, dulcimer, & remarkable melodies, Joyce creates gentle, stirring & sometimes haunting acoustic folk music...Extraordinary.”—Gene Armstrong, Arizona Daily Star

“...Just about the closest thing to musical nirvana you’re going to encounter in this or any other life, unless you’ve been very, very, good indeed & have a major deity owing you a big favor.”—Paul Rapp, The Metroland

“Lovely words, sung as if directly from some exceptionally magnificent angelic choir. A magnanimous treat for us mere mortals!!! Highly recommended & NOT TO BE MISSED!”—Stavros Moschopoulos, United Nations FAO CASA Gazette, Rome Italy

“An amazing release... Do yourselves (& your listeners) a favor—this one is a keeper!”—Steve Jerrett, KOPN Radio, Columbia MO

“Once in a blue moon I hear something that stops me dead & leaves me staring dumbly at the speakers like a dog at a whistle. Here’s one... So Strong is a special record. You will not regret owning this.”—The Metroland

“This stuff is amazing. [Rhythms, Rhymes and Tides is] very different yet perfect for airplay. I had to catch my breath!” 
—Woody Harris, WWGC Radio, Carrollton GA

“A recording filled with gorgeous vocal arrangements, gifted songwriting, & outstanding accompanying players... Listeners who find their way to [Rhythms, Rhymes and Tides] will play it over &over again.— Roberta Schwartz, Folk & Acoustic Music

“It's not just the romantic music... it's also the sense that [Joyce] still believes when lots of folks have just given up on love, dedication, & equal rights.”—Taylor Caffery, WRKF Radio, Baton Rouge LA

“A Perfect Album... [So Strong ] is total captivation from the opening cut.”— Danna Garcia, Canadian River Music

“The first three cuts of So Strong are among the loveliest songs I’ve heard in quite some time, especially Desert Rain, a song that reminds us that love can be as fragile as a cactus flower waiting to bloom... A singer-songwriter spectacular.”— Rob Weir, Advocate Newspapers

“Heart, integrity, and musical virtuosity.... Rarely does a recording come along these days that can capture my attention & not leave the stereo for days at a time. Such is this bright star [So Strong]...with Joyce’s stunningly beautiful vocals.”—  Dirty Linen